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When he walked into the Butte Civic Center lobby for the announcement of the Butte Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2026 on Feb. 11, John Kovacich looked like he could have been a mafia leg breaker.

Kovacich, who passed away unexpectedly Thursday at 66, was on the stocky side. Not fat, but powerful.

He wore a leather jacket, and his bald head was covered by a Boston Scally Cap that was straight out of the Peaky Blinders. It was like he was a grownup version of Scut Farkus’ sidekick, Grover Dill, on A Christmas Story.

But when he smiled, you could see that the legendary Butte High Bulldog and Montana Grizzly was much more likely to give you a hug than he was to break any of your bones.

That was my introduction to the man they called “JK.” I had known of him for decades, but I never had the chance to meet him before he was called to the Hall of Fame.

Kovacich was a key member on two legendary Butte teams. He played second base on the 1972 Mile High All-Star baseball team. That team is Butte’s only state championship Little League Baseball team in the boys 12-and-under division. The Mile High All-Stars advanced to the Western Regional Tournament in San Bernardino, California.

Five years later, Kovacich played cornerback on what might have been Butte High’s best football team of all time. At least Pat Kearney thought that when he named his All-Century team in December of 1999.

Those state champion 1977 Bulldogs are definitely the best defensive team that Butte — and perhaps the state — has ever seen. Statistically speaking, it isn’t even close.

The 1977 Bulldogs shutout their first seven opponents and allowed just 20 total points while going 11-0. That is an average of 1.8 points per game surrendered.

All four of Butte High’s secondary starters earned All-State honors. That included Jim Anderson, Dick Yant, Reed Madison and Kovacich.

Kovacich was listed as 6-foot-1, 180-pounds, and he said he was not really all that fast. But he was tough. He had to be because cornerbacks had to do a lot more tackling in the run-heavy Class AA of 1977.

Five years after the Bulldogs bullied their way to the state crown, Kovacich was part of the University of Montana’s Big Sky Conference championship team — at team that, under coach Larry Donovan, helped lead to the construction of Washington-Grizzly Stadium.

He wore No. 21 because Jim Kiick, a running back on the 1972 Miami Dolphins. But he liked to say he was No. 1 in your heart.

Since I took over as executive director of the Butte Sports Hall of Fame, Kovacich was on the list of people I could not believe were not already in the Butte Sports Hall of Fame. That was based on his resumé alone, too. I was not old enough to have watched him play for the Bulldogs.

How could a captain and All-State player from our best team not be recognized?

This year, he was finally voted into the Hall of Fame, and I could not wait to meet him. I also did not know what to expect. He was just a legendary Bulldog with a tough last name.

I assumed John was related to the legendary Bob “Ace” Kovacich, who also looked like he could have been a mafia leg breaker. I assumed wrong.

So, it was a bit shocking to see that this legend was such a mild-mannered guy. He was so genuine. He was the kind of guy who, when he asked you how you were doing, he really cared about your answer. He was closer to Tony Robbins than he was Dick Butkus.

In April, I asked John to be a guest on the ButteCast, and he enthusiastically agreed. He told me he listens to every episode of the podcast to keep tabs on the people from back home.

I offered to drive to Missoula to meet him for the episode, or I told him we could do it over Zoom. John would have none of either. He was going to drive to Butte to see me.

We met in the Vault at the Metals Sports Bar & Grill April 30 to talk for more than an hour. Over that time, John might have set a record for the amount of names he dropped when giving credit to teammates and coaches for his success.

He credited Butte High head coach Jon McElroy and defensive coordinator Jim Street. He credited assistants like Steve Stosich and Dan Lean. He even credited his East Junior High coaches Gene Fogarty and Chum Roesti.

He credited his fellow defensive backs, and he credited quarterback Barry Sullivan, running back Si Timberman and nose guard Andy Kalarchik. He pointed out that Timberman was the Offensive Player of the Year in Montana Class AA and Kalarchik was the Defensive Player of the Year.

Kovacich pointed out his great coaches and teammates at the University of Montana, and he told some amazing stories about the team. That included the time when quarterback Marty Mornhinweg led the Grizzlies to an amazing come-from-behind victory after staying up all night gambling at Nevada-Reno.

He praised his college roommates, including legendary Dillon coach Terry Thomas.

He even mentioned some of the great Butte High Bulldogs and Montana Grizzlies who were years older or years younger than him.

He gave a shoutout to his wife, Johnna, and thanked her for all that Anaconda girl has done for him.

Not one time did he mention a negative word about anybody or anything. Without question, I have never met a more kind, caring and positive person as John Kovacich.

Butte, America has never had a better representative.

He had not met some of his fellow members of the Class of 2026 before the induction, and they feel the same way after spending a little time with John. His infectious smile and happy-to-be-here attitude made the entire Hall of Fame weekend better for everyone.

While his induction was long overdue, it was fitting that his big night came on the same night that his 1972 baseball team also joined the shrine. That meant John easily had the biggest entourage of all individual inductees.

Five tables of 10 were reserved for them, and the entire group looked at John like he was their best friend. That’s how so many people look at John because to meet him was to love him. You just couldn’t help it.

It seemed like every person John ever met was still his best friend.

While his induction probably should have taken place at least a decade earlier, John was not put off by the wait. He was gracious and just looking forward to the weekend. He was simply honored to be joining the long list of Butte sports immortals.

He looked up to so many of them, including his good friend and neighbor Glen Welch and his cousin Len Kelly. He cheered them on, and he was honored to be joining them with a Green Jacket.

Until the day he died, John was a Butte High Bulldog. No title could have ever been better. Six days before he passed away, he attended the Silver B’s banquet and watched the Bulldogs play. Like always, he was the highlight for those who got to see him.

Like always, his table smiled and laughed just a little bit more.

“I’m just proud to be from Butte, Montana,” John said. “I vacation in Missoula, and I’m from Butte.”

Then, as not to even imply a bad word about any place or any person, John sang the praises of the friendly people of Missoula.

If you get the chance, I hope you will listen to the podcast. It was episode No. 343, but it will be No. 1 in your heart.

Listen in, and you will see that John Kovacich would have been the worst mafia leg breaker.

— Bill Foley can be reached at foles74@gmail.com. Follow him at twitter.com/Foles74 or Bluesky at @foles74.bsky.social. Listen to him on the ButteCast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.